The Nigerian Situation Room would like to commend INEC for addressing several of the hitches encountered during the postponed April 2 National Assembly elections on April 9 new date.
That said, we note with concern several lapses, including malpractices involving INEC officials in states such as Imo, Delta, Sokoto, Borno, Niger, Akwa Ibom, Kwara etc. There was also the problem of late arrivals of materials in Delta, Imo, Kaduna, Lagos and Taraba states, and the problem of incomplete voters’ registers leading to the disenfranchisement of a number of citizens. More worryingly, there were incidents in which INEC officials colluded with party agents in Bayelsa, Imo and Sokoto states. However, INEC itself has admitted to these lapses and promised to look into them ahead of the presidential election on 16 April, by which time it is to be hoped that the exercise will be an improvement on the last. In particular, we call on the Commission to ensure that presiding officers report directly to INEC, and that INEC itself uploads the detailed results on its website, in conformity with Section 71 of the Electoral Act.
Violence was a feature of the exercise, beginning with the bombing of the INEC office in Suleja in Niger State on the eve of elections in which a number of people were killed. On election day itself, more people lost their lives in Borno, Kaduna, Osun and Oyo states.
Additionally, gunshots were reported from polling units in Delta and Imo states, and certain interested parties in Benue, Osun and Oyo states were apprehended by the security forces transporting arms. At least two cases of kidnapping occurred, one in Bayelsa State involving an ANPP chairperson, the other in Benue State involving an INEC official.
We would like to take this opportunity to commend the Nigerian people for their evident passion in wanting to ensure free and fair elections, and for their orderly conduct throughout the exercise. This was so even when, as in the case of Taraba State, voting had to be extended into the early hours of the following morning. We would also like to single out NYSC members for their courage and commitment in exercising their patriotic duty, even in the face of the threat of violence. They will require that same courage and that same commitment in the 16 April election, where the stakes may possibly be higher, which is why we see the need to reach out to religious leaders and leaders of thought to calm tensions in the event the process appears to be getting out of control.
Finally, as results continue to be announced over the coming hours, the Nigerian Election Situation Room fervently hopes that the votes cast in the just concluded elections will be genuinely reflected in the ongoing announcements.
Clement Nwankwo
Executive Director
Policy and Legal Advocacy Centre, (PLAC)
Tel: 0803 8899999